Fricosu is accused of mortgage and real estate fraud. The government seized an encrypted laptop from Fricosu's home, and then asked the court to compel Fricosu to type the password into the computer or turn over a decrypted version of her data, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Though the government offered Fricosu limited immunity, it did not provide adequate assurances that it won't use the information on the computer to prosecute her.

Fricosu's attorney, Phillip Dubois, has argued that forcing a suspect or defendant to turn over a computer password amounts to self-incrimination in violation of the Fifth Amendment. The EFF made a similar argument in an amicus brief, claiming that the court should not force Fricosu to become a witness against herself.

The government, on the other hand, maintains that disabling prosecutors' access to encrypted computers would make it impossible to prosecute crimes such as child exploitation, national security, terrorism, financial crimes and drug trafficking cases, reports the Huffington Post.

Could Ramona Fricosu's case prompt a jurisprudential shift on non-testimonial communications? In U.S. v. Jones, Supreme Court dissenters presented a strong case for why the Supreme Court should reconsider how technological advances affect the rights of the accused; do cases like Fricosu's demonstrate an increased need for clarification regarding how the Bill of Rights should be applied to modern technology?

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U.S. Tenth Circuit features news and information from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, which hears appeals from U.S. District Courts in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming. This blog also features news that would be of interest to legal professionals practicing in the 10th Circuit. Have a comment or tip? Write to us.